


Out of the Spotlight

by adrift_me



Series: AUs of 50 flavours [1]
Category: Dishonored (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Music, First Kiss, M/M, Rock and Roll, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-29
Updated: 2018-09-29
Packaged: 2019-07-20 06:10:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16131281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adrift_me/pseuds/adrift_me
Summary: Corvo is an old rocker, and Levi is a man with an ethereal voice and past in an emo hardcore band. They find each other in a small club on the outskirts of the city, and music does its magic to bring two different souls closer.A tumblr prompt for a modern au.





	Out of the Spotlight

**Author's Note:**

> Bluebeholder asked me to write some old rocker Corvo with emo Outsider and I am honestly having a field day with this idea :D
> 
> This also kickstarts my collection of Dishonored AUs, and I want to write at least 50 of them. If you have an idea, don't hesitate to send me one, I write nearly anything and almost any ship.
> 
> [Come chat with me on tumblr or send me a prompt :)](https://a-driftamongopenstars.tumblr.com/)

The Makeshift Club is a small landmark on the local maps. A simple person wouldn’t know it, but if you happen to be a fan of cold beer, nightly adventures and good heavy music, then you would definitely know the place. An old refinery, turned into a place where every week people gather to listen to bands of all kind, from ripe rock-n-roll to moody blues and right down to eclectic emo hardcore.

Corvo has heard it all. In Makeshift they all know him and every time he drops by, it’s an honour. Musicians flock in groups to look at him and some try to chat or buy him a drink, but those who know Corvo, know that he is not really a people person. He is a music person, a man who has been all over the country, traveling to concerts, working with bands in his younger days and even rocking the guitar in late 70’s. The end of his career came somewhat naturally and he chose to retreat to quiet presence rather than booming from the stage.

He is in Makeshift tonight, nursing a glass of beer and watching people scurry about, preparing to rock. This night they have a few new bands playing, a sultry blues singer who is a black woman of immense talent; there is a band of old men who play some classic rock, and there is a youngster who Corvo can swear he has seen somewhere, though the man tends to keep to himself and avoid any gaze from people around him.

Corvo watches him the most - he definitely knows him.

“Hey Attano, long time no see,” a woman says, falling in the chair beside him and gesturing at the bartender for a drink. Slackjaw, the bartender, scowls at the gesture but goes to grab a glass and fill it.

Corvo looks to the side and smiles a little at the acquaintance. Mindy Blanchard, the troublemaker and a friend of old years. Makeshift is almost her place, at least, that’s what she claimed last time Corvo and her met.

“How is it going, Mindy?” Corvo asks, swallowing down the beer and smiling again.

“Peachy. We are going to have a good crowd today. Though the bouncer will have to watch out. See that young dude by the sound controls?” Mindy points her sharp finger at the man Corvo noticed earlier. “That’s Levi, he’s a sweet lad, but he has a following of people who might get easily hurt here. We don’t want that.”

“Who is he?” Corvo asks, looking back at his beer. Slackjaw slams a glass on the bar and Mindy gulps some of the drink down. She laughs a little.

“I said young, well, he isn’t really. He’s been around, not a teenager and not even in his twenties. He used to sing in a boy band. Really nice music, but I think they had some kind of a disagreement and he left. Too bad for them, the fans were there for his voice, so they left with him. He was gone for a while, writing new stuff, and then he made a come back loud enough to get back all of his fans.”

“Good music?” Corvo asks curiously, and Mindy taps the bar counter with her finger.

“Honestly? Some of the best shit I’ve heard lately. He is not like all the singers, he has his brain and heart in the right place. You’ll hear,” Mindy says, and Corvo really, really believes her.

By the time the crowd fills the club, Corvo finds himself in the usual spot, sitting far at the wall in a small booth, elevated enough to see the stage, but not in the range of the spotlight.

Mindy was definitely right, music is good here tonight as is the crowd. There is a mosh pit by the stage, there are drinks flowing, the loudspeakers are booming loud enough to be heard on the other side of the city, and it feels really good.

The adrenaline of music itself is what drives Corvo, a drug he can’t say no to, coming back here every week to enjoy what was once his career and his life.

When the sultry singer leaves the stage to roaring applause, mysterious Levi steps up. Corvo curiously eases forward, watching from his table as the young man grabs a guitar, avoiding the public’s gaze, sits down and opens his mouth to sing.

This may just be simultaneously the longest and fastest moment of Corvo’s life. It is as if he lived another life in these twenty minutes of listening to the ethereal songs of the young man. But even in his songs, he is not young at all, there is a lie under the quiet posture, there is age, wisdom and deep sadness in every word he sings. 

Corvo finds himself enthralled, matched by the quiet crowd that erupts in delayed applause, whistling and asking for more. But Levi, a tentative smile on his lips, leaves the stage, and Corvo loses him in the thick crowd and darkness.

When the concert ends and people slowly leave, Makeshift becomes a lonely old refinery again, with the sounds easily echoing off the walls, machinery creaking as if still alive and drinks poured at the bar for those remaining for some good time and catch-up.

Much to his surprise, Corvo finds Levi by the stage where he is packing up.

“Care for a drink?” he asks, looking at Levi, who stares back. There is surprising defiance in his gaze.

“I don’t drink.”

“Then… just a chat?”

Levi measures him, green eyes cool but curious, and slips the guitar back from his shoulder to the floor.

“I know you, don’t I?” he asks, letting Corvo lead him to a set of seats away from the stage. Someone left their leather jacket on one of the chairs, and Levi falls in that one. Black leather makes his eyes starker and his hair more like soot.

“Perhaps, if you were ever into rock-n-roll.”

“I think I was to one of your concerts,” Levi says, and Corvo looks at him in surprise. “Definitely. I just started out back then.”

“You have incredible music up your sleeve,” Corvo comments, gesturing.

“Thanks. It’s from the heart.”

“Boldly said,” Corvo says, looking at Levi’s dark fringe, covering his eyes just a little. “What brought you here?”

“Money?.. The owner said he will pay handsomely, and the boy has got to eat,” Levi says with a small smile, and it makes Corvo’s heart flutter. The smile is beautiful. Almost surreal on that face of a man who sung about something untouchable just half an hour ago.

“Fair enough, but no one just walks into Makeshift and gets a place. Sure, we give many bands and singers a chance, but you have to make an impression. I believe you did. I want to say that your music is truly incredible.”

“Thanks… you’ve already said that, but thanks,” Levi blushes, and Corvo laughs.

“Will we hear you again?”

Levi looks back, his eyes gleaming in the dark.

“Would you come to listen?”

“You can count on it.”

Neither lies, and next week Corvo is watching Levi pour his soul out on the stage. Afterwards they sit by the table again, discussing more about the city, about themselves, and eventually this happens again, and again, and again. Every week Levi entertains the crowd with his songs, getting a whole hour of the club’s time. Corvo learns out that the Makeshift’s owner is indeed paying handsomely, but it is obvious that Levi is in it for more than money. It is for wanting to be heard. For wanting to share the pain that he has endured, and Corvo never asks what it was, he just… knows.

Like Levi, he knows what it’s like to live trauma through music.

It’s really late when one of the shows ends, warm summer night welcoming people with an early sunrise. The club is nearly empty, save for Mindy who is bickering with Slackjaw again, Corvo and Levi conspiring in the corner and a few other patrons who are switching from heavy drinks to strong coffee.

Corvo turns to Levi, who is laughing at the joke he told, and points at the exit.

“Want to take a ride? I know a good spot not far from here, beautiful view, nice sunset…”

Levi looks at him for a moment and then nods. From their first meeting he has become braver in looking in people’s eyes, even though on stage he still prefers keeping his eyes closed or staring somewhere in the void.

“Sure. Let me just grab the gear,” he slides off the chair, takes the guitar and follows Corvo out of the club.

“I didn’t drink tonight, so we are safe,” Corvo explains as they load the guitar in the back of an old red van, and climb in. The car starts loudly, and while Levi is fiddling with his stuff, Corvo turns the music on.

“Hey, I know that one,” Levi exclaims, pointing at the screen. “Pink Floyd, isn’t it?”

“Sure is,” Corvo says, driving the car out of the small lot and out onto the road.

It is entirely empty, and Levi and Corvo enjoy the ride while blasting music on full sound, singing to the old hits and laughing when one or another messes up lyrics. Eventually both fall quiet and listen to relaxing ballade as trees swipe by. And behind them, the coast, wild beaches and small islands far away.

“I’ve lived here for some years now and I’ve never really gone down to the beach,” Levi says, looking out of the window.

“I could take you there if you like. Not today, today is a special treat,” Corvo says, and Levi nods.

The car finally drives into one of the turns, and Corvo parks the car with the bumper facing the road, stopping the engine.

“This is the place,” he says, sliding out of his seat and walking around the vehicle. He lowers the back of the van’s compartment and sits down, followed by Levi who climbs beside him.

It is still dark, but the sun has already appeared somewhere beyond the horizon. Soon, it will rise.

“It’s beautiful up here,” Levi says, drawing his arms back and watching. Corvo looks out onto the city too, at the quiet, nearly empty city at this early hour. Adrenaline of the night has worn off by now, as did the one from shouting the songs in the middle of nowhere, and only soft contentment remains. He watches a ship make its way into the harbour, waves hitting the rocky beach, the sun ever so slowly creeping up the sky to make its way out of the horizon line.

Sometimes touches Corvo’s pinky, and he looks down. Levi looks down too and they hit their foreheads, laughing and rubbing at them.

“Sorry--”

“My bad!” Levi says, laughing. His cheeks are pink, and Corvo knows that so are his. It is suddenly… incredibly awkward.

Awkward that it happened. And that he wants it to happen again. Not the forehead bump, but the touch of Levi’s finger on his. Maybe even more.

“Corvo?” Levi asks, and he looks up at him. Those green eyes look wonderful in the lack of sunlight, and that voice, hoarse from singing and screaming the songs, is hoarse.

“Yes?”

“Do you mind if I kiss you?”

“Bold request,” Corvo laughs, should he even be surprised. No, he shouldn’t and he isn’t. “I don’t mind.”

Levi’s arms wind courageously around Corvo’s neck - strong arms, not at all feeble - and his lips are on Corvo’s, and it feel right. It feels better than he could have imagined, even if he did entertain the thought once, or twice, or three times.

Their kiss is soft, unaware of the rising sun, of the birds flocking up in the trees, unaware of anything in this world. It’s a refreshing revelation, a magnet between two people who don’t know what lies ahead yet.

They are not strangers, not lovers, barely friends. But somehow Corvo thinks he really wants to drive Levi here every night, wants to drive him mad, wants to drive them ahead, where they can sing songs together and sit through the music shows and maybe, just maybe, kiss a little more.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [So this is](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16144826) by [WahlBuilder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WahlBuilder/pseuds/WahlBuilder)




End file.
